Chair.



No. 703,227., Patented June 2.4,` |902.

H. P. BLAcKARn.

CHAIR.

(Application led June 25, 1901.)

(No Nudel.)

lUNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARVY PEAROE BLAOKARD, OF OMAHA, ILLINOIS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 703,227, dated June 24, 1902.

Application filed June 25, 1901.

To @ZZ whom it may concern.'

Be it known that 1, HARVY PnARon BLACK- ARD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Omaha, in the county of Gallatin and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Chair, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in reclining-chairs; and the object is to provide a chair of this character of simple construction and so arranged that a person while on the chair may readily adjust it to any desired angle from an upright or sitting position to a reclining position, and that may be readjusted to sitting or raised position by the weight of the person rising to a sitting position, or, in other words, being self-adjusting to any point on upward movement.

I will describe a chair embodying myinvention and then point out the novel features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a side elevation of a chair embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof, and Fig. 3 is a detail section on the line a; of Fig. 2.

The frame of the chair comprises the front legs 1, the curved rear legs 2, and the side bars 3, which connect the front and rear legs of a side near the bottom. The upper ends of the rear legs are curved forward and connected to the front legs near the upper end, and arms 4 are supported on the upper ends of the front legs and on the highest points of the rear legs.

The back-frame consists of the side rails' 5, which at the lower end are mounted to swing on a bar 6, supported on the side bars 3, and pivotally connected to the lower portions of these side bars of the back-frame and below the bar 6 are forwardly extended arms 7, which are curved longitudinally on the under side and are designed to slide on a front crossbar 8, connecting the lower portions of the front legs, and havinghinged connection with the arms 7 are short arms 9, supporting a foot-rest 10. This foot-rest 10 is mounted to swing on a bar Y11,supported in said short Serial No. 65,906. (No medal.)

arms so that it will adjust itself to a persons feet at any position the chair may take. When the foot-rest is not desired for use, however, such as when the person is sitting practically upright, the short arms 9, carrying the foot-rest, may be folded over upon the arms 7. Vhen the back is moved to a reclining position, the foot-rest will be moved upward by the arms '7 engaging with a bar 7", attached to the rails 5.

The seat-frame consists of the side rails 12, which at their inner ends have hinged connection 13 with the side rails of the back, and their front or outer ends are connected by a cross-rail 14. A seat materiah-such, for instance, as a carpet material of suitable thickness or other fabric-is secured at one end to a bar 14 and at the other endto a bar 141'. At the lower end the seat material is passed around the cross-rail 14, and the bar 14 is engaged with blocks 14con the inner surface of the rails 12. At the upperend the material is passed around a cross-bar 14d, and the bar 14h is engaged with blocks 14' on the rails 5. A cushion head-rest l5 is attached to a strip 15a, which may be wound upon a roller 15b for adjusting the head-rest.

Mounted to swing on the side rails 5 are pawls 16, connected together at the lower end by means of -a rod 17. These pawls are designed to engage at their free ends with the teeth of curved racks 18, formed in the upper surface of the rear legs. It will be noted that the teeth forming the racks are seated in the legs, or, in other words, are not projected. Therefore there will be no danger of their catching upon the clothing of persons passing by; but it is to be understood that racks may be secured to the surface of the legs. From one of the pawls or from the cross-bar 17 a link 19 extends to a connection with an operating-lever 20, pivoted to the rail 3 at the right-hand side of the chair, the upper end of this lever being in convenient position to be engaged by a persons hand.

In operation should a person sitting in the chair desire to move the back and the seat to any degree of reclining position it is only nec essary to draw the lever 20 rearward, which will disengage the pawls from the racks, the back will swing rearward, and the front rest IOO will move forward and upward. When the back is at the desired incline, springs 16a will cause the pawls to engage with the teeth of the racks. Should the person desire to return the chair to a substantially upright or sitting position, it is only necessary to straighten up therein, bringing the weight of the body practically on the front portion of the seatframe. This will cause the said seat-frame to move downward and the back toswing upward, the pawls during this movement riding upon the rack-teeth, which, as will be noted, are ratchet-shaped. When the chair is in its upright position, the side rails or bars l2 of the seat-frame will rest upon a rung 2l, connected to the front legs. A safety-rung 21 prevents the back from moving too far downward.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A chair, comprising a main frame, portions of said main frame forming the front and rear legs, the rear legs being curved, rackson said rear legs, a back pivoted on the main frame, a seat-frame having swinging connection with the back, pawlscarried by the back for engaging with said racks, and a lever pivoted to one side of the main frame and having connection with the pawls, substantially as specified.

2. A chair havinga main frame, comprising front and rear legs, the rear legs being curved, racks on the upper sides of said rear legs, a back-frame pivoted to the main frame, pawls carried by the back and adapted for engagement with the racks, a lever having operative connection with said pawls, a seat-frame having swinging connection with the back-frame, and a seat fabric or material attached at one end to the forward portion of the seat-frame and at the other end to the upper portion of lthe back-frame, substantially as specified.

seat-frame, lugs on said members rearward of Y said rods, a rod connecting the opposite members'of the back-frame, lugs on said members below said rod, a flexible seat material, a rod secured to the forward end of the seat material and adapted to engage against the lugs and to press the material against the rod connecting the seat members, and a rod attached to the opposite end of the material and adapted to bear against the lugs on the back-frame members and to press the material against the bar above said lugs, substantially as specied.

et. In a chair, a frame comprising front and rearlegs, racks on the rear legs, side bars connecting the lower portions of the legs of a side, arms connected to the upper portions of the legs of a side, a back-frame, a rod supported in said side bars and upon which the backframe is mounted to swing, arms extended forward from the lower portion of said backframe, short arms having hinged connection with the first-named arms, a fixed bar on the front legs with which the first-named arms engage, a foot-rest having swinging connection with the short arms, a seat-frame having swinging connection with the back-frame, and pawls carried by the back-frame for engaging the racks on the rear legs, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HARvY PEARoE LAGKARD.

Witnesses:

T. J. WILLIAMS, C. H. EUBANKs. 

